Te Araroa Trail – Day 35

Thursday, December 7, 2023
Distance/ Total: 33.9 km / 21.1 mi

After one more rest day yesterday (December 6) I’m anxious to get back on the trail. On my last rest day I returned the car back to Hamilton checked into the Hostel and spent the afternoon just relaxing.

I was up early this morning and on the trail about 6:45. The trail through Hamilton actually goes right the middle of a shopping mall and then joins a railway trail as it heads out of town. It goes through a business district and then cuts through a neighborhood to reach a trail up to Till Hill. Although just a small grass covered hill there was a pretty good view from the top. I passed the 800 km mark just past this hill.

The trail then skirts the outside of Taitua arboretum. I took a short side trip through the arboretum since it seemed more interesting than the bike path. Back on roads it was a short roadwalk into the town of Whatawhata where I grabbed a cold Coke before continuing on.

The walk out of Whatawhata was more roadwalk until I reached the Karamu Walkway. It was good to finally get off the roads. The trail started out going up and over some hills in a farm pasture. The trail eventually joined a farm road and went through several sheep and cow pastures before rejoining a road 7.5 km later.

I followed the road for a short distance before turning off to head to my motel for the night. I checked in at the Karamu Homestead and had a nice room for the night. It was probably the most comfortable bed I’ve slept in on this trip.